Mike Cronin and Mark Duncan’s new book Revolutionary Times looks at the revolutionary period in Ireland. In this podcast he talks to Dion Fanning about the stories we tell ourselves, the problem with reunification and why Irish history remains such a hot topic to debate.
The DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson spoke at an event organised by Co-Operation Ireland last night. After the proceedings ended, the politician sat down with Tommie Gorman to discuss power sharing, the Windsor Framework, and North-South relations.
Emily O'Reilly marks 10 years as European Ombudsman as Brussels is engulfed by the Qatargate corruption scandal. As one of the top officials tasked with policing fellow eurocrats, she explains where gaps remain in the "integrity architecture" of the EU and why. The former journalist and Irish ombudsman also tells Thomas Hubert how she is approaching next year's European election, when her own position will be up for renewal.
Wirecard was once a $30 billion tech start-up unicorn. However, it was later exposed to be a financial fraud by a team of journalists led by Dan McCrum. McCrum is part of the Financial Times investigations team, and his book, "Money Men: A Hot Startup, A Billion Dollar Fraud, A Fight for the Truth", is an international bestseller. In this podcast, he talks to Sinead O’Sullivan about his efforts to uncover the story and the interlocking relationships between politics and business.
Niall Woods has a unique perspective on the world of professional rugby. A former international who plied his trade with leinster, London Irish and Harlequins, he worked in various bodies representing players for ten years before establishing his own talent agency, Navy Blue Sports. In this podcast, he talks about the decline of London irish, cutting deals with sponsors, and why ruby players who operate out of the IRFU system should be available for the national team.
In his book, "Our Lives in Their Portfolios", Brett Christophers argues that that as a result of privatisation and the financial crisis, the ownership and operation of housing, infrastructure and other social assets have moved behind closed doors. In the latest episode of ‘The Context’, he talks about his book and his theory with Sinead.
The restaurateur Padraic O’Kane is upbeat about the future for the high-profile Dublin eateries he co-owns, Fire Steakhouse & Grill in Dublin’s Mansion House and Sole Seafood & Grill on South William Street. However, he is less optimistic about the outlook for the hospitality sector outside of the main cities, many of which he believes will close down if they are are forced to repay warehoused tax debts. In this podcast, he talks about the economics of the sector, and why, as it did during the pandemic, the government needs to step in. He also talks about bringing US college football to Dublin each year and explains how, this year, the event will break the world record for the number of Americans leaving the US to attend a single sporting event.
Last year, out of the blue, the Biden administration sanctioned China’s semiconductor industry. It banned the sale of semiconductors to China and US citizens working with Chinese companies. The move highlighted the importance of the sector – and the growing geopolitical issues enveloping it. After all, it is a resource that is fuelling the global economy. In Chip War, Chris Miller recounts the sequence of events that led to the United States perfecting chip design and details why the battle to control this industry will shape our future. In this podcast, he talks to Sinead O’Sullivan about the politics and economics of the semiconductor industry.
Qualtrics is far from a household name but that belies its prolificacy. A $12.5 billion company, its client roster includes 90 per cent of the Fortune 100 companies. Irishman Donnchadh Casey is chief customer officer with the SaaS company. In this podcast, he talks to Rosanna Cooney about its new EMEA headquarters in Dublin and the upcoming acquisition of Qualtrics by private equity firm, Silver Lake.
On July 22, 1982, Malcolm Macarthur went to the Phoenix Park in Dublin and bludgeoned Bridie Gargan, a 27-yeara-old nurse, to the point of death. Two days later, he shot a young farmer, Donal Dunne, in Edenderry, Co Offaly with Dunne’s own shotgun. The killings triggered the resignation of the Attorney General, and almost brought down Charles Haughey’s government. A new book by the Irish Times journalist Harry McGee delves into the murders – the motivation behind them, the manhunt, and enduring legacy of Macarthur’s violent killing spree. On this podcast, McGee talks to Ian Kehoe about the events of 1982, Macarthur’s personality, and the political fallout that almost toppled a government.
By his own admission, Noah Charney is “half criminologist, half art historian”. An academic and a prolific writer, he is widely acknowledged to the world expert in the area of art forgery. His book, The Art of Forgery, examines how to value art and weird things, but it is also a book about psychology and the manicness of the men (and they are nearly always men) who try to one-up the high world of art institutions. In the latest instalment of The Context, Charney talks to Sinead O’Sullivan about what constitutes original work, the biggest cons attempted, and why the De Vinci Code is riddled with inaccuracies.
